TV Online—Amazon Unbox and Netflix Watch Instantly

After a lot of waffling, I finally decided to take the plunge and try out Amazon's Unbox, as well as Netflix's Watch Instantly service. Overall, I'm fairly pleased.

The bad: The waffling came about because of system requirements. Netflix requires Windows Media Player 11, with all its DRM "improvements," which had me leery. I don't really trust Microsoft to have my best interests at heart as regards management of my digital media, so I didn't really want to install their upgrade. However, on reflection, I realized I don't use WMP that much, anyway, so I figured it wouldn't be an issue. The biggest problem I have with Netflix, though, is that it requires use of Internet Explorer as a browser in order to watch their offered video. I'm a dedicated Firefox user, and IE frankly gives me hives. But if it's just for that service, I can deal.

It was my understanding that Unbox requires use of the latest WMP version, as well, though I don't see it on the system requirements list at Amazon. In any case, it at least doesn't force me to use IE, since their player is independent of the browser. While Netflix runs streaming video, Unbox works with downloads, which are limited to use on 2 computers. Neither system is Mac compatible (boo).

The good: Netflix has a very good selection of movies and TV shows available for viewing--over 5,000 according to the website. If you're a member, you can use one hour of viewing time per dollar you pay for your monthly membership. So if you have one of their basic subscriptions, you're looking at 5-10 hours of viewing/month. If you're a spazz like me and have a grandfathered (from *ahem* years ago) super duper membership, you're allowed, well, a lot of viewing time. I'll never use it all up, but at least it adds a bit more value to my membership, since I have a bad habit of leaving movies laying on top of the DVD player for months before I get around to watching them.

Anyway, I first set the system up on my son's computer so the kids could watch the Sonic the Hedgehog animated series. They finished that up and then apparently couldn't find the time to look through for other shows they might enjoy, so I went ahead and set up the system on my own computer and started watching The Office from Season One. The software was easy enough to install once I'd gotten my Windows updates finished, and runs pretty smoothly. Netflix seems to feel my DSL connection is on the low end, speedwise, so it delivers the lower quality versions of the available movies, but it's not bad--definitely on a par with the free streaming service offered by the network websites.

Also at Netflix, they're offering new episodes of Heroes the day after network broadcast, I guess to make up for NBC's pulling the show from iTunes. They also offered the premiere of Californication before it was broadcast on Showtime, and Dexter's Season Two premiere for a limited time.

At Amazon Unbox, you can download episodes of a good number of TV series for $1.99 and episode--the same price as at iTunes. NBC's shows will continue to be available here even after they pull everything from iTunes at the end of this year--I guess NBC was happier with the DRM at Amazon than they were at iTunes. They also have movie "rentals" for $3.99 each. These have to be viewed within 30 days or they will explode. Actually, they automatically delete themselves. Once you start playing them, you have 24 hours to finish watching, so if you have to leave on an emergency trip to Zimbabwe in the middle of your movie and you won't be back for a month, you're out of luck. If you have a TiVo, you can watch downloads on your TV. You can also hook the TV into the computer to watch, or watch downloaded video on a select number of portable devices (iPod not included--another boo). Portable video files come with your download.

My experience with Unbox so far has been limited to free content. I "purchased" (can you call it purchasing when it's free?) three supplemental videos for Bones ("Couples Counseling" videos--short and fun little asides to the story as it's playing out on the series). At first I had some difficulty using the software--it wouldn't download my videos. I had a suspicion I'd entered the wrong password, but couldn't find an option in the software to correct the issue. After an uninstall and reinstall, I was able to enter the right password and download the videos. All that went swimmingly, so I suppose my difficulties could be attributed to user error. It was a bit frustrating, though, to not be able to figure out how to fix my password without uninstalling.

In any case, both these options seem to be very viable for catching up with shows online. If you want DVD quality viewing, you're not going to get it here, but if you can't wait for the DVD releases, both Unbox and View Instantly can help you keep up with your viewing, or check out samples of shows you might not watch otherwise due to scheduling conflicts.

24--Day 0

In TV Guide this week, there's a sidebar article about 24-Day 0, an animated web series from the producers of 24. Set before Day 1 (i.e., Season One of 24), it's voiced by the show's stars. Check it out at http://dayzero.com

TV Guide Channel on Veoh

Most online video links take you to YouTube these days, but there are other options. Veoh has been adding more and more content. Today in their newsletter I noticed a link to a TV Guide channel. Check it out here--there's lots of clips from the TV Guide cable channel available on demand.

...and Another Online Preview

The pilot of The Riches is available at AOL TV. This show from FX, with Minnie Driver and Eddie Izzard, has been getting some really good buzz.

Andy Barker, P.I. Available at NBC

The first six (yep, SIX) episodes of NBC's not-yet-premiered show (it premieres next week), Andy Barker, P.I., are available for viewage on NBC's website. Not sure why they're showing them this early, but the incomparable Jane Espenson is on their writing team, so it's worth a look.

Via Whedonesque.

Fox Offers Shows for Sale on Network Site

Still more options for online viewing/download, this time directly from a major network.

From this article at NewTeeVee:


"FOX is really pushing web and digital distribution (despite a few lawsuits1 to the contrary), releasing episodes on MySpace and DVD shortly after they air (and sometimes before2). We’re pretty sure it’s the first network to offer primetime shows for download on its own sites. Rollout is scheduled for “the coming year.”

....

Affiliates can sell about 30 percent of ad inventory for the streaming shows, in line with the deal ABC cut with its own affiliates last fall, according to Broadcasting & Cable4."

More Online TV Options—Bittorrent

Just saw on Whedonesque that you can now download a good number of TV shows legally through Bittorrent. They're charging the same amount as iTunes ($1.99/episode). They also have movies available to "rent" (you have to watch them within a certain amount of time after download) as well as games and music. I can't speak to quality or download speeds (Bittorrent is peer-to-peer, so it seems like you might have problems downloading less popular titles), but it's definitely a step in the right direction.

EDIT: Just read elsewhere that these files are only playable in WMP 11, and that it's practically impossible to make backups in case of computers crashing. Not so much a step in the right direction. Somehow there has to be a middle ground between the content producers' copyright control and fair use on the part of the consumer. This doesn't seem to be it.

Jericho on iTunes

For those who are interested in getting caught up with Jericho, the show is now available on iTunes. In addition, the recap episode that aired last Wednesday is now on iTunes as a free download.

All extant episode are also still available at CBS.com, as well as the recap episode, but if you've had trouble with their player or just prefer downloading to streaming like I do, iTunes is a good option.

Jericho Season One:

Friday Night Lights on iTunes

Friday Night Lights makes its debut on iTunes this week. If you'd like to check out the show, you can download the pilot episode for free for a limited time.

And this is my one hundredth post!! Whee!! And it figures that tonight Blogger lets me edit...

Day Break Now Online

Four additional episodes of Day Break are now available at ABC's website, along with the episodes that were originally aired last year.

And in other good news, the ABC player decided to behave itself tonight, so hopefully I'll be able to watch these. I caught "What if They Are Not Alone" tonight and enjoyed it very much. More on the additional episodes of Day Break later.

Watching TV Online—CW, CBS and ABC

With the announcement that the CW is now offering streaming video, I of course had to rush over and check it out. Available are episodes from Beauty and the Geek, Supernatural, One Tree Hill, Veronica Mars, Everybody Hates Chris, Girlfriend, All of Us, and The Game. Unfortunately, there's only a select few episodes from each show. That's too bad, because I'd be interested in catching up with Veronica Mars.

I was a bit put off at first when I clicked and was asked to download a player. But the player the CW is using has been the best by far of any I've tried so far at the other network websites. It plays smoothly, and the picture quality is good. My only quibble is that there isn't a full screen option--the full-screen button makes the player full-screen, but doesn't increase the size of the actual viewing area by much.

I've also tried the streaming video at CBS and ABC. CBS worked relatively well. The shows run in RealPlayer, so I could click on the RealPlayer icon to shift them to a true full-screen. However, the picture quality isn't quite good enough for full-screen viewing. In addition, I had trouble from time to time with the player stalling between sections (each episode is four sections, with a short commercial between each one). On the last episode, "Vox Populi," it was so bad I finally gave up about 2/3 through. Fortunately I had that episode on the DVR, so I was able to finish up.

ABC was even worse. Their player stalled repeatedly, until about halfway through an episode of Brothers and Sisters it decided not to give up the goods at all, and I had to miss the rest of the episode. If I go back and try again, I'll have to start at the beginning, too, which is frustrating.

Day Break at ABC Online

Starting January 29, Day Break will be appearing with a new episode every Monday. Details here.

Good TV Writing

In my other life--or one of my other lives--I think I have four or five now--I write fiction and screenplays. So part of the purpose of this blog is to give me a reason to watch scads of TV and then write about it and hopefully learn by osmosis and discussion the hows and whys of good TV writing.

So I'm going to mention something I saw last night while catching up with Jericho. At the end of episode two, "Fallout," Hawkins is shown acquiring a piece of information via radio about the extent of the nuclear holocaust that has befallen the US. We don't know exactly what he's found out. But at the very end, Hawkins is shown in his house/fallout shelter in front of a large map of the US. He pulls out a red pin from a drawer and sticks it in Denver. Okay, we knew about Denver. Then he pulls out a pin and sticks it in Atlanta. We knew about Atlanta, too. Then...

A pin goes into Chicago. Then Philadelphia. Then a pin hovers over LA before moving down to stick into San Diego. Then the camera focuses solely on the drawer as Hawkins pulls out pin after pin...after pin...after pin...

That struck me as a really nice piece of writing. Some information given, some withheld--and in an arrestingly visual way that made us happy to go along with the reveal and the take away. And that's going into the mental file on Good TV Writing.

By the way, I'm watching this show via the full episode streaming video offered at CBS's Innertube. So far I'm pretty happy with the interface.

More on Jericho later.

What (and Where) to Watch During Hiatus Season

Lots of shows are available online now, so if there's anything you've been wanting to catch up on, this is your chance.

At ABC watch streaming feeds of all of this season's episodes of Grey's Anatomy (which you've missed because you're watching Supernatural, right?), Desperate Housewives, Lost, Brothers and Sisters, Ugly Betty, and What About Brian.

At NBC, catch all the available episodes of Friday Night Lights, Heroes, and Identity.

CBS has CSI, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, How I Met Your Mother, Jericho, NCIS, Numb3rs and Survivor.

Fox makes things harder to find, but on their MySpace page you can see episodes of Prison Break, Bones, The Loop, American Dad, Standoff, Vanished, Talk Show and 'Til Death.

The CW is supposed to be beta testing streaming video of some of their shows, including Supernatural and Veronica Mars, but in the meantime these shows are available at iTunes (and no, you don't have to have an iPod or a Mac to watch these--in fact I find them easier to watch on my laptop because the screen is bigger), along with lots of others. It appears they've upgraded the quality of the files, too, making them even more worth the $1.99 per episode.

So, if there's a show you've been curious about, or have just missed catching up on, take advantage of these new outlets to sample or get back up to speed.